Two Constitution Screenplays!
by BeckayJames
Summary: Two cute little screenplays about the Constitution! Appropriate for all ages. Funny and good for teaching the constitution!


**Characters:** **John Hancock** **James Madison** **Soldier** **Judge** **9 Jury Members (Unspeaking)** **24 Court-Attenders (Unspeaking)** **  
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**John Hancock:** James Madison, as Governor of Massachusetts, I believe that a Bill of Rights, such as the one in many State Constitutions, is necessary to secure the state of Massachusetts in its ratification of the Constitution, being as it is that Boston is very anti-federalist, mainly because of the lack of such a Bill of Rights. **James Madison** : Ummm… So you want me to write a list of rights? **John Hancock:** Yeah, I guess. I just used a ton of words to squeeze in a lot of information for the benefit of our reader. I think that you should start off with something about how everybody has the right to say what they want, as long as they don't hurt anyone. Like, I kind of sassed my mom, and she grounded me, but it wasn't like I was _hurting_ anybody! Also, Freedom of Religion. I worship myself! So what?! My mom's still angry at me! "You're a narcissist, she says!" Put in Freedom of Press, too. I made a John Hancock newspaper, for my new religion, and my mom grounded me! I am triple-grounded! Plus, a Freedom of Assembly. Because I had a Self-Rally. And I got quadruple-grounded. And a freedom to petition the government. Because I sent out a petition to the government to make my Self-Religion the national religion. **James Madison** : Did you get quintuple-grounded? **John Hancock:** No. She just shook her head and looked sadly away. **James Madison:** So, that'll be the First Amendment. Because 5 things seems like a nice amount for future students to memorize for a single amendment. In summary: the freedom of religion, the freedom of speech, the freedom of press, the freedom of assembly, and the freedom to petition the government. Just in case the reader wants a recap. For the Second Amendment, I'd like to put something about guns. Because I have one and I want to keep it. In case the Attack of the Jello Monsters really _was_ a documentary. **John Hancock:** Maybe you should put in something about how it's just in order to keep a Militia well-functioning. Because that's necessary to the security of a free state. Which I guess this is supposed to be. **James Madison:** What I like about that is that it _definitely_ won't be misinterpreted by, say, a future blond rich businessmen out of touch with the silent majority but still seeking a term as President, with their primary tactic being fear-mongering and insulting their rivals. **John Hancock:** Yeah. Third Amendment time! *A soldier comes stomping down the stairs* **Soldier:** I NEED MORE COMIC BOOKS! Because living here is kind of a drag. Why did the King make me move _here_? *Madison and Hancock look at each other slowly, as Madison jots down the Third Amendment. Hancock nods approvingly* **Hancock** : In a way, you could say that him being here is an example of searching and seizing. He was searching for an apartment, and seized great rent prices. Maybe we could say "No Searches and Seizures." Like, unless there's a warrant. And, on the legal side, he kind of searched our property without a warrant for comic books when he first came, and then he seized those comic books. Let's put that as the Fourth Amendment. **Madison** : Why is he still here again? Isn't the war, like, over? **Hancock** : The cable was turned off when the news said that. **Madison:** Oh. I hate it when it does that. It happens a lot to me. Mainly because cable hasn't been invented yet, but… **Hancock:** Fifth Amendment Time! **Soldier:** Did you know that I have to pay a tax for breathing? The government needs the tax money to keep up Trial Tuesday. Everybody on trial. **Hancock:** How could we stop that here? Like, somebody to approve trials. But not political… like a jury. But GRAND. **Soldier:** We need more- **Madison:** Are you part of this now? **Soldier:** The script implies it. Now, I was put on trial 754 times for a parking ticket. Every time I went on trial, I had to say "Well, yes, I did in fact park in the wrong spot." And that was kind of annoying. So maybe make it a right to, like, not do that? **Hancock:** Not testifying against yourself in a court of law? **Soldier** : Did I say that? Wow, I sound really smart. Yeah, put that in. We need even more. **Hancock** : I don't like your usage of "We." We're only letting you do this to make you leave. **Soldier** : Another thing I didn't like was when the judge sent me off to here without the trial actually taking place. Maybe there should be something about how there should actually be a trial before I have to live here. **Madison** : Are you complaining about living in my house for free? Your whole thing about "Searching for an apartment" and "Seizing great rent prices" doesn't make me feel any better. In fact, that's the Fourth Amendment. You have to have a warrant for entering people's homes and taking their stuff. Because otherwise it's creepy. **Soldier** : Sorry. I'm just a plot device, you know. Like, the person that suggests stuff, and you make it better. Because dumb is funny, so the audience will laugh. Also, you really might want to put in something about the necessity of trial. **Hancock** : Why? We already have so much- **Soldier** : Because this is a _play_ about the Bill of Rights, among other things, so we need to include the rest of the Fifth Amendment rights. One of which is due process of law. Also, make sure to compensate people in case you take away their stuff. Because it's rude otherwise. That's enough. Now, I had to wait for months before being tried, 754 times, no less, for my parking ticket. Also, the entire jury was made up of ants. Ants don't like me. It wasn't very impartial. **Hancock:** How about the right to a speedy trial? **Madison:** By an impartial jury! Of, like, people. **Soldier:** That would seem to be what I'm getting at. Also, I didn't even know that I was being tried for a parking ticket. I thought I was being tried for murdering someone. Which I may or may not have done. Moving on! **Madison:** How about the right to have the charges against you read out? **Soldier:** I didn't even have any witnesses. On either side. I was just the ant-jury yelling out how guilty I was. **Hancock:** Right to witnesses? On both sides. **Soldier:** I didn't even have a lawyer! Well, I did. But he was a Swedish guy who stumbled into the courtroom trying to find the bathroom. And then he wasn't even there for the rest of the trial. **Madison:** Right to a lawyer, then. I think that's enough for today. *Five Months Later* **Judge:** James Madison, you have accused Soldier of being rude. For 21 dollars in damages. **Madison** : I thought that the jury would get bored if it was anything less. *Inspiration strikes, and Madison scribbles something down.* **Madison (** _Mumbling)_ **:** Yeah. If the amount in controversy is over 20 bucks… what should the rest be? **Judge:** The jury is unanimously in favor of the plaintiff. **Madison:** NOOOOOOOOOO! **Judge:** That's you. **Madison:** YEEEEEAAAAHHHH! **Judge:** You are now entitled to $350 million. Why? I do not know. The plot demands it, even though you only sued for 21 dollars. **Madison:** I got lucky. I falsified half those documents. How about I put in something here about… OH! If some fact is thought to be true by the jury, it can't be reexamined. But the enemies I might be able to ruin if that was it…. EXCEPT for the rules of Common Law. That's good! **Judge:** Mr. Madison… I'm going to have to put you under arrest. **Madison:** Did I say that out loud? ***** One Year Later* _Madison is in jail._ **Madison:** 678 _million_ in fines! AND I HAVE TO LISTEN TO TAYLOR SWIFT MUSIC ALL DAAAAAAAAAY! CRUEL PUNISHMENT! And quite unusual. Ooh. I like that. CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT! And the bail was 90 billion. I think that's too much. Hmmm… *Takes out a sheet of paper* *Crosses to Guard* **Madison:** YAY EIGHTH AMENDMENT! *Madison is on trial again* **Judge:** Mr. Madison, there is not, as you claim there is, a Right to Escape Jail. It doesn't talk about it anywhere in the Constitution. You are found- *Madison writes something* **Madison:** Well actually, there is. *Madison walks out* **Madison:** A right is a right, even if it's not in the Constitution. *Madison is back with Hancock* **Hancock:** What happens to all the stuff not mentioned in the Constitution? Like, the right of Congress to legislate about cats isn't in there. So, can they still do stuff? Oh yeah! I rule a state, so can the states _please_ get that power?! Also, I'm a person. So may the people _also_ have that power? Or how about both? **Madison:** I guess…. **Madison and Hancock:** YAY BILL OF RIGHTS! *Curtain Closes* *Curtain opens* _Hancock is holding a piece of paper._ **Hancock:** Should we submit it to Congress? The Senate and the House'll meet together, and if ⅔ of them agree, then our document will pass Step One. Or should we wait until ⅔ of state legislatures call for a Constitutional Convention? **Madison** : How about the first? **Hancock** : But then even if that succeeds, ¾ of the states will have to ratify. With a Convention, ¾ of that needs to approve. No state interference. **Madison** : Let's go with Congress. Isn't it cool how you can either go with the states or the federal government? **Hancock** : Despite being relatively intelligent in the previous few minutes, I have suddenly forgotten what the federal government is! **Madison** : Oh, of course! As is typical in this type of play, somebody has forgotten something! Federalism is the idea that there should be a national government cooperating with subsidiary governments, which, in our case, are state governments. **Hancock** : I'm suddenly more confused. But it's been explained, and so fulfills a requirement on the grade, so let's move on! **Madison** : In such a government, how do we keep one branch from subsuming the other branches? **Hancock** : Though I am, as evidence suggests, unfamiliar with politics, I will nevertheless endeavor to explain… this. Checks are when one body of government, or branch, can block the actions of another. Balances are when one branch has some influence in the actions of another branch. **Madison:** Ummm... **Hancock:** So: the legislative branch checks the executive branch by necessitating the approval of all Presidential appointments, but the executive branch checks the legislative branch by being able to veto legislation. The legislative branch further checks the executive branch by being able to override a veto by ⅔ vote in both chambers. The judicial branch checks the executive branch _and_ legislative branch by being able to interpret their actions, or declare these actions unconstitutional. But the executive branch balances this by being able to appoint judges. And the legislative branch can impeach members of the judicial branch. **Madison** : You refer to branches in your speech. Perhaps you could illustrate to the reader/performer/whoever what these branches are? **Hancock** : Let me begin with the Judicial branch, the branch that interprets the law. At the highest level, this is the Supreme Court. There are 9 members. There are no age limits to this branch, and so you could join it as a 3 year-old. The only problem is that, like all Presidential appointments, it has to get approved by the Senate. And the Senate isn't likely to approve that. **Madison:** I suppose that we should move on to the Senate now. **Hancock:** Well, there are two houses of the legislative branch, the branch that makes the laws: the Senate and the House of Representatives. The House is based on population, so it represents the people, but the Senate has 2 members per state, regardless of population, so it represents the states. The reason why we have these is that the smaller states worried that if the large states had a ton of representatives, their ideas would dominate the smaller state, and the smaller states wouldn't have a voice. So now there are two chambers. That's called the Great Compromise. **Madison:** How many people are in the Senate? **Hancock:** Well, there are 50 states in the future-world where this is being performed/read/whatever, and 2 members per state, so that is… 100! **Madison:** And so, logically, there are 435 members of the House. Simple math. **Hancock:** Duh. I mean, there's definitely no extremely complex political thing involving immigrants and the Ku Klux Klan going on that made the number 435. It's definitely just math. **Madison:** Cool. What are the requirements for office? I mean, like, I know that I've already been elected to the House twice, but a refresher, please? **Hancock:** For the House you must be 25, for the Senate you have to be 30, and for the Presidency you must be 35. **Madison:** Isn't the President part of the _executive_ branch? I mean, I was President, I should know. **Hancock:** Yes, but it's easier to remember term limits if you start at 25 and count by five. House, Senate, President. **Madison:** Alright. What does the executive branch do? **Hancock:** Umm… well, you were President, so this should be old news - but essentially the executive branch carries out the law. For our intents and purposes, it's made up of one person, the President. Who can serve up to 2 terms of 4 years. Really, the term limits and ages limits and stuff are quite easy to remember: just remember that the judicial branch is dumb and doesn't have any limits, and the other branches count by twos. Then, remember: House, President, Senate. Or, John Nash Hates To Pick Favorite Super Soakers. Judicial None, House Two, President Four, Senate Six. Years, that is. **Madison:** And there aren't any term limits for the legislative branch. The President's really the only one. In fact, I could have been re-elected as many times as I wanted. It wasn't until FDR's time that the two-term thing actually got into the Constitution. **Hancock:** Stupid tradition. So, to recap: John Nash Hates To Pick Favorite Super Soakers. The author came up with that, by the way. You're welcome. The executive branch carries out the law made by the legislative branch, which is interpreted by the judicial branch. **Madison** : Another mnemonic: Jack Interrupts Lucy Making Entertaining Celery. Judicial interprets, legislative makes, executive carries out. For the number of members: Easy Oranges Sew Handy Helping Feathers (Thirsty Flighties) Juggling Noodles. Like, Cuties sewing feathers (that are thirsty) while somehow juggling noodles. I think that's memorable enough. This stands for Executive One, Senate Hundred, House Four (Thirty Five), Judicial Nine. **Hancock:** Next topic! Let's see… compromises. **Madison:** I love compromises! Like, I compromised my views during my Presidency, I compromised the security of the nation with some of my Presidential actions, I compromised- **Hancock:** Yeah. Lots of compromises. For example, the ⅗ Compromise. What was that? **Madison:** Basically, South has a lot of slaves, North doesn't. South wants the slaves to be counted for population, because then they get more representatives in the House, and so more votes, and so… well, yeah. The North didn't want that, because they, well, they didn't want the South to have more votes than them. Then they came up with reasons (South said that they're people, North said that they weren't treated like that, South said well, you're face is dumb, North said that it wasn't, and also what did this have to do with the debate, and plus slaves can't vote anyway, and the South eventually just seceded). **Hancock:** So, they compromised. They said that slaves would be worth ½ a person! Except not exactly. Because history just loves to make students memorize dumb information, they decided on ⅗. Why? I do not know. Probably because it looks better on paper. Next compromise! **Madison:** We already touched on the Great Compromise … How about the Electoral College? **Hancock:** Well, that's not really a compromise…. but it kind of is. The Framers (the people who wrote the Constitution) wanted a President elected by the people. But they thought that people would naturally vote for somebody who was from their own state, since there was more info available on that candidate if they were from their own state. **Madison:** So, they came up with the Electoral College. Each state gets as many representatives in the Electoral College as they have Representatives in the House plus their Senators. So, Representatives plus 2. D.C. gets the same amount as the least populous state. So basically 3. All but 2 states use winner-takes-all. If you get a majority of the popular vote in that state, you get all the College votes. The other 2 kind of split them. It's weird. **Hancock:** And they vote for the President. However, it's kind of controversial, since it might work out differently than the popular vote. But it's better than it was in the past. It used to be so that whoever had the most votes for President would be President, but now it's whoever has the _most_ votes. That essentially means that some state's voters are more important than other states. **Madison:** That goes against the Preamble. Which contains the goals of the Constitution. Each phrase signifies something different. You can memorize it with the phrase: FEIPPS. It rhymes with "yipes." It stands for Form, Establish, Insure, Provide, Promote, and Secure. **Hancock:** And then, of course, "We the people of the United States," Blah Blah Blah, "Do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America." **Madison:** Let's do it once from memory and then look into the meaning: "We the people of the United States, in order to FORM a more perfect Union, ESTABLISH justice, INSURE domestic tranquility, PROVIDE for the common defense, PROMOTE the general welfare, and SECURE the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.  
 **Hancock:** The first part is pretty clear. We're peeps in the United States of America. Implicit is the recognition that sovereignty derives from the people, a concept called Popular Sovereignty. We're creating a country better than the one before, i.e. the Confederation, we're trying to make sure that everybody, through our shiny-new justice system, is going to have justice, we're trying to make everything peaceful within our nation, defend our new nation, make sure what's good for the people is being done, and we're trying to make everybody, now and forever, free. **Madison:** Also, we're creating a Constitution. This idea of a new Constitution partially came from a flawed old one: the aforementioned Confederation. It was the old Constitution, that gave all but some power to the States. Really the only national thing was Congress, a unicameral body where all states had one vote. Again, almost no power was given to it. **Hancock:** And it had no power to collect taxes to fund the few activities that it was allowed to undertake. They could only ask politely. **Madison:** They couldn't ask states for gold and silver either. Since these were the materials used to mint money, there was a money shortage. So, they couldn't pay their state taxes, or their debts. **Hancock:** The farmers were forced by the Massachusetts government to sell their land and livestock to pay these debts and taxes. **Madison:** So, these farmers got angry. The British have their queues. We have our angry hillbillies protesting about perceived injustices. **Hancock:** They never really posed a serious threat to the government, but after they started rallying around courthouses, they stormed a federally-owned national arsenal. **Madison:** Since there wasn't any national army, in accordance with the Articles of Confederation, the national government had to wait for Massachusetts to get the state militia to beat the farmers. **Hancock:** And that was just plain embarrassing. Many thought that something had to be done for the federal government to get its respect back, so to speak. Delegates from the states met in a Constitutional Convention to amend the Articles of Confederation. So that's what they did. With a new, strengthened Articles of Confederation document, the first Constitution of America was also the current one. Isn't America great? **Madison:** _NOT!_ That was too hard for these great Founding Fathers and Framers. Instead, they wrote a totally new document. Which we still have today. Except for the 27 additions, one of which just negates another. So, really, 25 additions, changes, etc. **Hancock:** Many Americans rallied around this Constitution, which gave many, many more powers to the federal government. These were called the Federalists, because they believed in a strong, central, and _federal_ government. The people who didn't believe in that were the Anti-Federalists. Because they were Anti Federalists, I guess. **Madison:** The Constitution needed ratification in 9 states before it became law. Many states were predominantly Anti-Federalist. To convince these states, The Federalist Papers started. They were 85 papers and essays and stuff, written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and myself, James Madison, under the pen name Publius. **Hancock:** They were pretty influential. So, on behalf of the Anachronistic Fourth-Wall-Less Society For Creative Theatre and Theater and Other Similarly-Spelled Things, Commonly Known As The AFWLSFCTTOSSTCKATAFWLSFCTTOSSTCKATAOCOIWBAUIT, And Of Course Otherwise It Would Be An Undesirably Infinite Title, So We've Stopped Here, thank you, and goodnight! **Madison:** AFWLSFCTTOSSTCKATAFWLSFCTTOSSTCKATAOCOIWBAUIT stickers will be available outside. SECOND ONE:

[The room is dark. A single figure is standing in the darkness. The light slowly lights up the room. It is the room where the Supreme court cases are held. A woman, about 40, sits in a chair.]

Ophelia: My name is Ophelia. The year is 2165. I am the 9th Supreme Justice in the court. A man walks in. Julian: And my name is Julian. I am related to a mad who was in Shay's Rebellion. I am a historian. Ophelia: We are going to a school classroom to help children who don't necessarily know a lot about history learn about our government and the past.

[They show up at a school together. It is a remote little school house with only around 15 rooms. Ophelia looks around and then walks into a classroom. There are only around 19 children in the classroom, all in various states of cleanliness. A girl is asleep on a desk. Three boys are fighting. All of them have bloody noses. The teacher is nowhere in sight]

Ophelia: Hello, children. Everyone stops what they are doing and looks up. My name is Ophelia. Boy: Afeeliwhat? The children laugh, and then stop when Ophelia glares at the boy. Julian: And my name is Julian. We are here to help you learn. Boy: Learning ain't for us! Our parents just send us here to get us outta their hair. Julian: (Thinking thoughtfully) Well, do you like stories? (All the children nod.) Well, I've got a great story. Julian finds a chair and sits down. Everyone scurries to come sit around him, but the boy scowls and stays where he was. Ophelia: (To boy) Come sit down with everyone, please. Boy: Why should I? Ophelia: Because you might learn something. Boy: Fine. But I'm not listening to anything you have to say. (Boy goes and sits down. Ophelia stands in the back, watching. Julian: Okay. Once upon a time. Girl: Lame! Julian: Just listen. In 1776, people had a funny idea of life. There were no electronics. Girl 2: NO PHONES? Julian: No phones. And they had a funny government too. There was a thing called the Articles of Confederation. They were a poor way to use the power they had. It was chaos. The federal government, under the Articles, was too weak to enforce their laws and, therefore, had no power. The Continental Congress had borrowed money to fight the Revolutionary War and could not repay their debts. The farmers had to sell their land and their livestock. They could not live! So they decided to rebel against their leaders. Girl 3: So, what happened because of the rebellion? Julian: Many Americans saw these things as signs that the nation was falling apart. The government decided to host a constitutional convention. A constitutional convention is a gathering for the purpose of writing a new constitution or revising an existing constitution. Boy 2: The constitution that we have today? Julian: Exactly. So all the delegates rounded up, and they started arguing. Some famous people did not attend the Constitution such as Adams, Hancock, and Henry. They feared that a stronger national government would hurt the rights of the states. They had worked so hard to free themselves from England. Now they would have another flawed system on their hands. It wasn't fair! Boy: What did they argue about? Julian: Some wanted a strong national government. The government should protect "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." The government's powers come from the people. The best way to protect rights is with a republic. Some did not. They said a strong national government could threaten individual liberty. The state governments are closer to the people's control and so should have more power than the national government. Boy 5: But we have a strong national government. Julian: True. George Washington. Who was he? Girl 2: God! Girl 3: Nope! Boy 2: The president. Julian: The 1st President. He ruled over the Convention. James Madison was known as the father of the Constitution. He studied past government systems, was extremely influential, and recorded everything discussed at the Convention. Boy: This is boring. Julian. There are two groups of states. Ones who had a large population and one with smaller populations. The larger states wanted THREE branches of government with TWO houses: House of Representatives and Senate. Because of their large population, they wanted the system to be based on population so they would get more votes. The smaller states wanted Three Branches of Government and ONE house. Because of their smaller population, they wanted equal representation They debated and debated. And finally, Richard Sherman came up with an idea. It was called the Great Compromise. It called for TWO houses of government, one based on population, and one with equal representation. After that was finished, they moved onto something called the ⅗ Compromise. Boy 4: Is that something to do with majority? Julian: Nope. The ⅗ Compromise was a compromise reached between delegates from southern states and those from northern states during the Constitutional Convention. The debate was over if, and if so, how, slaves would be counted when determining a state's total population for constitutional purposes. Then there is the electoral college. Since the people back then did not have the fancy technology we do today, the people had no idea who the candidates were. What they would just vote for whoever was running who was from their state. So, they created the Electoral College. The members of the Electoral College learned all about the candidates and then went back to their state and reported everything. But it has changed over time. The 2000 U.S. presidential election brought the Electoral College into the spotlight for the first time in many years. Before that election, the Electoral College got so little attention that many American voters thought they voted directly for a President and Vice President on Election Day. In fact, they are actually voting for a slate of candidates for the office of elector nominated by a political group and pledged to support that party's candidates. Boy: This has got to be the most boring thing ever and I personally- All kids except Boy: Shhhh! Julian: So they made a Constitution. But many people did not want to ratify the Constitution. They believed Congress would impose many taxes, the president would act like a king and the judicial branch would take over the state courts. They complained that the rights of the people were not written in the Constitution. So the Federalists wrote a series of eighty-five essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay in the late 1780s to persuade the voters of New York to adopt the Constitution. Girl 1: But what about the Constitution? Ophelia: (Pushing off the wall) I'll explain this one. So the Constitution has a beginning called the Preamble. The Preamble to the United States Constitution is a brief introductory statement of the Constitution's fundamental purposes and guiding principles. Boy 2: Aren't there like, 5 trees? Ophelia: Well, there are 3 branches. The United States Government is divided into three parts, or branches: the legislative branch, the executive branch, and the judicial branch. Each branch has a different duty, but all three branches must work together. The executive branch of our Government is in charge of making sure that the laws of the United States are obeyed. The President of the United States is the head of the executive branch. The President gets help from the Vice President and the Cabinet members. The President leads the country and commands the military. The legislative branch is in charge of making laws. It is made up of the Congress and several Government agencies. Congress has two parts: the House of Representatives and the Senate. Members of the House of Representatives and the Senate are voted into office by American citizens in each state. There are currently 100 Senators and 435 judicial branch is in charge of deciding the meaning of laws, how to apply them to real situations, and whether a law breaks the rules of the Constitution. The Constitution is the highest law of our Nation. The U.S. Supreme Court, the highest court in the United States, is part of the judicial branch. The Supreme Court is made up of 9 judges called justices who are nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate. The justices hear cases that have made their way up through the court main task of the Supreme Court is to decide cases that may differ from the U.S. Constitution. Once the Supreme Court makes a decision in a case, it can only be changed by a later Supreme Court decision or by changing or amending the Constitution. This is a very important power that can affect the lives of many people. The system of checks and balances is used to keep the government from getting too powerful in one branch. For example, the Executive Branch can veto bills from the Legislative Branch, but the Legislative Branch can override the veto. The Constitution provides that an amendment may be proposed either by the Congress with a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate or by a constitutional convention called for by two-thirds of the State legislatures. Boy: I'm tired of this. Let's go guys. (Everyone begins to get up, uneasily.) Julian: Do you kids really want to go? (A couple of kids nod, but the rest stay silent.) Ophelia: You don't have to listen to him. Stay, we're almost done. (Looking at boy) If you don;t want to listen, go. Boy: I ain't scared of you! Julian: Okay. We are now going into the Amendments to the Constitution. There are 27 of them. But, we are only going to look at the first ten. They are called the Bill of Rights. The first one gives freedom of religion, speech, and the press, and protects the right of assembly. Ophelia: The second one is protecting the right to keep and bear arms. Julian: The third amendment guards against the forced quartering of troops. In the years before the American Revolution, British officials forced the colonists to quarter to house and feed British troops. Ophelia: This amendment protects against unreasonable searches and seizures. IN the olden times, the talked differently than we do. The exact words of the people were. The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. Girl 4: That's weird! Julian: The fifth amendment guarantees a trial by jury and "due process of law," and guards against double jeopardy (being charged twice for the same offense) and self-incrimination. Ophelia: The sixth amendment outlines the rights of the accused, including the right to have a "speedy and public" trial, the right to be informed of the charges made against him, the right to call witnesses in his defense, and the right to have an attorney in his defense. Ophelia: This amendment lays out the rules of common law. This amendment gives the right to a jury trial in certain civil cases and inhibits courts from overturning a jury's findings of fact. Julian: The eighth Amendment protects against cruel and unusual punishments, such as excessive bail. Ophelia: The tenth and ninth Amendments are very similar. THe ninth and the tenth Amendments are powers of the people and the state. Julian: Ophelia...you have a court case in an hour!\ Ophelia: Oh heavens! YOu're right! (Looks at the children) I'll be back. All kids: Bye! (They start to leave)  
Boy: Wait..! (Boy rushes up) I'm….sorry. I was disrespectful. Please come again?  
Ophelia: Of course. I've got to go though. I accept your apology. Julian: Good work, Ophelia.

THE END 


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